California-based Sunrun and Harris Interactive recently announced the results of a survey of 2,211 adults (1,475 homeowners) about the cost and desirability of installing a home solar system. The main sound bite is the one-liner that “97% of Americans overestimate the cost of going solar,” as well as the stat that “nearly 8 out of 10 of those who do not already have solar panels say they would install solar if cost were not a factor.”

This is the Castaway House, a renovation in Phoenix, Arizona that’s also the first project to be certified under the Phoenix Green Construction Code. The team* behind this Gold-certified project transformed an existing 1,000 square-foot, abandoned house originally built in 1951 into a cutting-edge, energy-efficient abode with 1,970 square feet, four bedrooms, and two bathrooms. Here’s a little more background.

TOTO just introduced a new toilet called 1G and announced that it’s the first manufacturer to break the one-gallon per flush barrier for a gravity-fed toilet, according to a recent statement. 1G is like a tornado in the toilet — less the noise of pressure-assist version — with a Double Cyclone flushing system.

A future homeowner inherits a chunk of land in Ulster County, New York and decides to put a dreamy modern prefab on it. I can understand that. The owner picks an LVL model home from Rocio Romero, and the kit costs $47,000, including such things as the plans, a construction binder, open wall panels, certain structural materials, and the exterior siding. The owner budgets just over $120,000 to finish the 1,669 square-foot home and hires a contractor to do the work, but that’s where things go wrong.

*Leave a comment below through the end of Monday, April 23, 2012, to be considered for the random giveaway explained below.

I hope you’re enjoying Earth Day and doing something to better your impact on the planet. Over the years, I’ve come to realize what’s important on this site is not to criticize others for not doing this or that but to curate and share good insight as much as possible. And the insight I’m most optimistic about for the future is green prefab. So I’m going to give away 10 copies of a great prefab book called Prefabulous + Sustainable by Sheri Koones.